Pesticide Issues
The Neonicotinoids: An Objective Assessment
The Neonicotinoids: An Objective Assessment Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com April 2018 Updated 26 January 2020* (I wrote this article in response to a request following a presentation that I gave to the San Diego Master Gardeners. A revised version was later published by the University of California at http://ucnfa.ucanr.edu/files/280172.pdf) Everyone’s heard about the claim that honey...
The Case of Pristine® And The Dying Queen Cells – A Pesticide Mystery Solved?
THE CASE OF PRISTINE® AND THE DYING QUEEN CELLS– A PESTICIDE MYSTERY SOLVED? First published in ABJ March 2013 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com A combination of cooperation between beekeepers and a pesticide company, good sleuthing, good science, and good luck may have solved the mystery of the dying queen cells. Let me walk you through the...
The Pesticide Situation: Part 1
Contents The Earth’s Biosphere. 1 The human population. 2 Insect populations in general 2 Agriculture’s situation. 3 The value of pollinators. 4 Who is the real enemy?. 4 Our three choices. 4 The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. 4 Acknowledgements. 4 References. 4 The Pesticide Situation Part 1 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com ...
The Pesticide Situation: Part 2
The Pesticide Situation: Part 2 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ, February 2019 The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act requires that a pesticide will generally not cause any unreasonable risk to man or the environment — taking into account the economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits of the use of...
The Pesticide Situation: Part 3 – Some Future Directions in Agriculture
The Pesticide Situation: Part 3 Some Future Directions In Agriculture Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ, March 2019 Allow me to introduce this article with a disclaimer. I do not claim to be a crop farmer nor pesticide expert. But over the past decade, I’ve spent a lot of time listening to those with...
The Pesticide Situation: Part 4 – Pesticide Resistance and Changes in Farming Practices
The Pesticide Situation: Part 4 Pesticide Resistance and Changes in Farming Practices Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ, April 2019 Although I’ve heard some activists call for a ban on all pesticides, the hard fact is that production agriculture, whether conventional or organic, will for the foreseeable future depend upon the application of plant...
The Pesticide Situation Part 5: Reinventing Nature
Contents Reinventing Nature. 1 Biopesticides (aka “biologicals”) 1 Resistant cultivars. 2 intensive agriculture. 4 Innovations in Mechanical Technology. 5 Agroecology and “regenerative agriculture”. 5 Resistance to change in a changing world. 7 Notes and citations. 8 The Pesticide Situation Part 5: Reinventing Nature Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in ABJ May 2019 In their...
Pesticides in the News
Pesticides in the News Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in August 2019 Our beleaguered Environmental Protection Agency, tasked with protecting man and the environment, is caught between an unsupportive Administration and a public that is becoming more and more concerned about the effects of pesticides and climate change. I plan to return to...
The Status of Our Industry Regarding Varroa Management and What Can We Do About It?
The Status of Our Industry Regarding Varroa Management and What Can We Do About It? Part 2 First Published in ABJ August 2023 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com CATCH UP Last month I wrote about the options (legal or unapproved) that beekeepers are taking to deal with varroa as it evolves resistance to amitraz. In this...
Good News from the EPA !
Good News from the EPA! Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in ABJ January 2024 Last month I wrote about a letter that I written in July to the EPA, asking for clarification as to whether they actually had authority under FIFRA to justify restricting beekeepers from using generic oxalic acid (and other natural...
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